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The first wave of the pandemic in Italy “hit” the north of the country violently, with the Bergamo be in the center of his … mania coronavirus. Hundreds of thousands of people were infected, many died. Today, however, the number of cases in the Lombardy province is surprisingly low. Experts suspect that there may be herd immunity behind.
The images from Bergamo shocked the whole of Europe. The north city Italy it has become a symbol of what happens when the virus spreads out of control and the healthcare system collapses. Today, the number of cases in the former “hot spot” of the pandemic is characterized as quite low.
According to the Italian newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano and the Athenian-Macedonian news agency, the province of Bergamo had the slowest increase in the number of coronavirus cases in the entire region in October.
According to the newspaper, the number of infections in Bergamo increased by only 6.9% between October 2 and 23. In Milan, on the other hand, at 50 kilometers, which was relatively slightly affected by the first wave, it increased by 60.7% during the same period. The newspaper suspects that the call already exists group immunity.
If the newspaper’s case is confirmed, Bergamo would write a climactic story a second time: It could become the first province on the continent to demonstrate herd immunity. This means that many residents are unharmed and the virus cannot spread further. According to experts, for this to happen, around 2/3 of the population must have already come into contact with the virus and show the corresponding immune response.
“Antibodies protect against recurrent infections,” Luca Lorini, head of the emergency department at the Papa Giovanni Hospital in Bergamo, told the German newspaper Welt. “That is why people in Bergamo get sick less now.”
According to surveys, an average of 35% to 40% of Bergamo residents came into contact with the coronavirus in the spring. The fact that fewer people are now infected in Bergamo County than elsewhere could be an indication of at least partial herd immunity.
However, there are other explanations for the phenomenon: the fear and trauma of people in cities particularly affected by the coronavirus in the spring like Bergamo remains great and the trauma caused by the catastrophic consequences is still deep. In the second wave of the coronavirus, therefore, they behave with much more caution than the citizens of neighboring areas.
Lorini is also considering this possibility. In addition, the doctor admits that the antibodies disappear after an indefinite time and then there is no protection against a new infection.
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